The newly established Tesla Claim Foundation announces a class action lawsuit against car manufacturer Tesla. “Because the cars regularly show defects and do not meet expectations.” In a preliminary case, Tesla has already been sentenced in absentia to take back vehicles. The collective action is one of the first to make use of new legislation that allows for joint claims for damages.
“Tesla sells electric cars with the promise that they will be virtually maintenance-free and profiles itself as a service-oriented brand. In both areas, the experience of many Tesla drivers is at odds with the promises, ”said the foundation. “In fact, we see that Tesla does not want to cooperate in solutions for the customer,” says secretary and press officer Sieger Suurbier. In an inventory among Tesla drivers, many complaints about the cars and the manufacturer have been submitted to Stichting Tesla Claim. “In the autopilot function, for example, the car can suddenly brake on the highway, drive shafts need to be replaced after a few journeys, doors open by themselves or do not open anymore, and both the promised power and the range are not achieved in practice. Headlights, windscreen wipers, windows and the computer screen often do not work properly. ”
Customers who report with problems come home from a rude awakening, according to Tesla Claim. Foundation chairman Van Waning, himself a Tesla driver, said he had to return to the garage ten times in the first six months. “Tesla is hardly accessible. First there was a telephone line where you were on hold for at least half an hour. Now you can only app and a repair appointment can often only be scheduled a month later. If other items break between the time of scheduling and the actual appointment, they cannot be added to the appointment and you will therefore get the car back without all the necessary repairs. ” In a first lawsuit, filed by Van Waning, Tesla has already been sentenced in absentia to take back two cars. The manufacturer has refused a final settlement attempt and has started an appeal.
Tesla Claim Foundation is now preparing a class action lawsuit demanding damages for all affiliated customers. This has been possible since this year through the Settlement of Mass Damage in Collective Action Act (WAMCA). Previously, a liability claim could be declared generally binding, but victims subsequently had to go to court individually for compensation. The case of the Tesla Claim Foundation is one of the first to respond to the new legislation.